Friendship Friday

This week I dedicate my Friendship Friday to my BFF from Illinois, Nancy. We have shared so much in the years that we have been friends. Happy times, sad times, good times, bad times, crazy times...she has always been there for me. She is such a beautiful person inside and out, and I am blessed to call her my friend.
*I was a bridesmaid in her wedding 2 weeks ago and she was a bridesmaid in mine almost two years ago. "Always a bridesmaid, never a bride." Nancy, now they can't say that about EITHER one of us.
*She hosted a Bachelorette Party for me, and didn't skimp on all the fun goodies. Say hello to Juan Carlos for me:)
*We've had some really fun trips- Las Vegas, Hilton Head, Canoe trips and her trips to visit me in South Carolina. I'm sure there are more that I am forgetting.
*Her baby (her dog Bailey) used to live with me, and still calls me "Momma Leigh Ann".
*We always have fun shopping together. I talk her into buying clothes that actually fit her body! Who knew she had such a body and such a tiny waist! We need to burn all of her t-shirts. Hehe!
*We have spent hours talking about boys and life. We have definitely been each other's saviors in our hard times.
*I miss living in the same town as her. I can remember calling her late at night to invite her over for a chat, movie, munchies or a late night trip to Wal-mart.
*Since Nancy doesn't enjoy cooking, I used to cook for her all of the time. I would often call her before she went to work to send her with a goody bag full of food. She would then get to work and call me so we could talk for hours. That was our thing!
*She was there for me when my brother died. She made a special trip to come to the visitation with (her now husband) Brad, and she gave a Memorial in my brother's name.
*She has always showered me with thoughtful gifts and cards for birthdays, Christmas or just because.
We have laughed and cried and grown up together. I am looking forward to the next phase of our lives together. Hopefully, our children will grow up together and share the special bond that we share with each other. I only wish that we lived closer. I miss you and I love you, Nanc!!!

Thursday Thirteen- Things That Make Me Smile

I have been tagged by Dena for a MeMe-so here are thirteen things that make me smile.
1) My husband- he makes me smile and laugh every day.
2) My family- I only wish that they all lived closer.
3) My girl dogs- they have such funny personalities.
4) The band at my church, Seacoast- they rock the house!!
5) My friends- I love them all, even if I don't get to see them often.
6) My new house- I love dreaming about all of the fun memories we will make there.
7) Seeing a new comment on my blog- The more comments the better. It makes my day!
8) Food- I love to cook AND I love to go out to eat.
9) The thought of having a child- I can't wait to be a mother.
10) Diet Coke- It is my "coffee" in the morning. I love the taste of it with crushed ice in my Tervis tumbler.
11) TV shows that I watch with my husband- We don't get to spend tons of time together, so I cherish our evenings having dinner and watching our favorite shows together.
12) The dream of starting my own business- I can't wait to be my own boss, use my creativity and provide for my family.
13) Making things pretty- whether it is decorating my house, doing something crafty, planting flowers, etc. You name it. I can't help it. I like to be crafty and use my creativity.

Wordless Wednesday!

THE WINNER OF THE PAINT WAR- SHERWIN WILLIAMS SYCAMORE TAN!!!

The Third Time is NOT the Charm!!

It's been a rough couple of days with paint decisions. Even though the women liked the yellow, I think it has lost its battle with the man in my life. He thinks it is too bright and will be too much yellow on the side of the house. So... We decided on plan #2, which was to pick out a tan color. Tan house, black roof and shutters, red door. My cute husband (who as I said before is in touch with his feminine side) was so worried about the paint color that he researched some "Paint Your House" websites and e-mailed them to me. One of them was Better Homes and Garden, and he even opened an account and created a house with the color combinations that we are thinking about. That is why I love him!!! Our 1st try was with Trusty Tan from Sherwin Williams (directly under the yellow). It looked too pink/peach, so then we went with Sweet Georgia Brown by Behr (under the window). It was too gold next to the brick. The third time was NOT the charm, so I will be going to the house tomorrow with the Sherwin Williams color swatch chart before I buy more paint. Buying quarts of paint just to test on the house is getting expensive, but I guess we don't want to make a BIG expensive mistake by painting the whole house the wrong color. Now we just have to figure out what to do with all of these quarts of paint. Paint party anyone?


By the way, did anyone notice the different wedding picture in The Birds Nest header? Thanks Jennisa for changing it for me. I think it looks better- you can actually see our faces:)

YELLOW?????

I bought a quart of Sherwin Williams "Butter Up" today to test it on the Hardiplank. It's only 1 coat with a cheap foam paintbrush, but what do you think? I need feedback before they paint the house.

Friendship Friday

This week I dedicate my Friendship Friday to my best friend and husband, Mike. I am so blessed and grateful to have him as my best friend let alone be married to him. He has every quality that I would look for in a person:

*He makes me laugh every day

*He makes me feel good about myself

*He stands behind me with complete support no matter what

*He has rock solid morals and ethics

*He is good with children and old people

*He respects me

*He likes to travel with me

*He loves our dogs as much as I do- they are his children

*He supports my passions

*He is extremely trustworthy

*He communicates with me

*He prays with me every day

*He is good to my friends and family

*He looks forward to having a family with me

*He is in touch with his feminine side-he "gets" weddings, showers and shopping

*He helps me around the house

*He picks out wonderful presents for me, writes beautiful things in cards and sometimes even writes me poems.

*He encourages me and makes me want to be a better person

*He works hard to provide for me

*He understands me without me ever having to say a word

*He is just like me- we are definitely two peas in a pod

*He begins and ends my days with a kiss and an "I love you"
*He is the best thing that ever happened to me

I am a lucky girl to have a husband who is also my best friend!!!

Thursday Thirteen!

Thirteen fun things that I have done in 2007
1) I traveled to Illinois in January for my Dad's retirement party (Finally!!) and we surprised him with a Carribbean cruise from all of the kids and grandkids.
2) I enjoyed the 40th Anniversary Kappa Kappa Gamma reunion in February. I was able to spend time with so many sorority sisters/friends that I don't get to see very often.
3) I went to see Rent and Mamma Mia at the Koger Center for the inaugural year of Broadway in Columbia.
4) I saw several concerts: The Blue Man Group (with Mike), Sesame Street Live- Elmo Makes Music (with Dena and Annie), John Mayer (with Mike), Billy Joel on Valentine's Day (with Mike) and Rodney Carrington (with Mike, Chad, Sara, Luke, Clark, Chris and Katie).
5) I had a great time at a bunch of weddings: Becky and Terry Bishop (stayed in a beach house with 4 other couples in Hilton Head Island), Clark and Luke Fancher (Mike's assistant- was able to hang out with friends who traveled from Illinois for the wedding), Marci and William Saltzman (attended my first Jewish wedding- wow!! They know how to throw a party), Aunt Bev and Neal Brasel (my 70 year old aunt's wedding- it was soo sweet) and Nancy and Brad Bechdoldt (I was in my 20th wedding. Isn't that crazy? It was a blast!)
6) My sister-in-law Kristen visited during Masters Week, and went to The Masters with my husband. We had a great time with her, and wish that she could visit more often.
7) We went to Hilton Head Island in April for a few days to hang out with friends and go to The Heritage golf tournament.
8) In June, we went to Charlotte for The annual Pierson Purina Chowdown hosted by our friends Tad and Kelly Pierson. Everyone donates dog food for the local shelter. We were able to hang out with all of our friends who live in Charlotte. We don't get to see them enough, even though they live close.
9) Our Godson, Cole Jacob Forinash, had his baptism is June. We were honored to be a part of the celebration which included a pool party and dinner the night before and brunch and yummy cake after church. During the weekend, we were able to walk with 65,000 other people in Walk for the Cure in downtown St. Louis (the largest Walk for the Cure in the country).
10) In July, we went to visit our friends Cher and Ash Milner in Beaufort, SC for the Water Festival. We spent the weekend on their boat, and had a fantastic time!
11) We also went to Pawleys Island in July to visit Shannon, Brandon and Hunter Davis. We always enjoy our yearly trip to see them and spend as much time as possible on the boat and at the beach. We get to take our dogs with us, so it's also Ali and Ashleigh's yearly vacation.
12) We attended the season opener for Gamecocks football, and plan to attend the rest of the home games. We always look forward to the football season and all of the fun tailgate parties.
13) Nancy's bachelorette party in August was such a good time. We took a bus load of girls on a wine tasting tour of Shawnee Hills Wine Trail in Southern Illinois. I was able to spend an entire day with friends from home that I haven't spent much time with in the last several years. It was great!!
14) Yes, I know it's Thursday Thirteen, but how could I possibly forget our annual trip to the "yake" (that's lake for those who don't know Annie). We go during 4th of July week to hang out in the pool, on the boat, and on the jetski (even though Mike and I can't get on at the same time hehe) with Dena, Annie, Grannie, Grandennis and whoever else might be hangin' out. It's always so fun to hang out with our "yake priends". Hehe!

I WON!!!!

My husband and I are reality show addicts. You name it, we watch it. Big Brother, Survivor, Amazing Race, American Idol, America's Got Talent, Rock Star Supernova, etc. We DVR all of them, just in case we are not home to watch. I know, you are laughing at me right now. Our summer reality show just had their finale last night. You see, at the start of the Big Brother season we drafted teams. You have probably heard of Fantasy Football. Well, the Birdsells were enjoying Fantasy Big Brother this summer. We needed something to make it more interesting, and we even picked prizes for the winner. We drafted our teams at the start of the show, and amazingly it ended up that we each had a player going head to head in the finale. What's even crazier is that it was father against daughter. The Donatos, Dick and Daniele, were really fun to watch. I won in the end. Congratulations Dick Donato and congratulations to me. Honey, I will really enjoy the massages(one professional and one from him) and my car definitely needs detailed!!! Thank goodness Survivor starts tomorrow.

Oh Happy Day!!!

Nancy, my BFF from Illinois, got married this weekend. We have been looking forward to this day for a long time. Like me, Nancy was "Always a bridesmaid, never a bride". Not anymore!!! She found her true love, and she was finally the bride. Everything was absolutely beautiful, including Nancy who looked like a princess, and we had a great time!!! Congratulations Nancy and Brad and best wishes for a happy life together!

Friendship Friday

My first Friendship Friday had to be about Dena since she got me hooked into bloggieworld. We have shared so much in the few short years that I have known her.

*We have logged millions of hours on the phone talking about boys, stationery and life.

*We've had several fun vacations together including two once-in-a-lifetime trips to Guatemala to visit Annie (1st trip) and bring her home (2nd trip).

*We've shared many great meals always ending in dessert (that's our thing).

*We are great clothes shopping buddies because we are honest with each other on how things look on.

*She hosted 2 bridal showers for me- one she flew to Illinois to host.

*We share a love for paper. We could look at it and talk about it for hours.

*She makes me laugh hard.

*My day is not complete without talking to her and getting the scoop on what is going on in her world.

*She teaches me new things all of the time and pushes me to be a better person.

*I love her daughter like I would my own.

Thursday Thirteen on the 13th!!

Thirteen reasons I will be glad for my new house to be completed.

1) I will finally be able to unpack boxes that have been unopened in over 2 years. I will open all of my wedding presents and actually start using them.

2) We will have a fresh start in a brand new home, and try to put the past behind us.

3) I won't have to write that riduculously high rent check every month and I will get rid of the double payments (rent AND construction loan payment).

4) I will have a garage to park in rather than a garage full of boxes.

5) I will finally have the basement that I have always wanted with the space to start my own business.

6) We will hopefully be moved in by Thanksgiving so we can use our beautiful china and have all of our friends over to celebrate with us in our new home.

7) I will put up a tree and decorate for Christmas for the first time in three years. We will also resume the "Christmas is Freakin' Over Party" in January.

8) I will have a closet that I can hang my clothes in (my double-hung closet rack came crashing down this weekend with all my tops, pants and shoes in a heap on the bottom of the closet)

9) I will live in a house that doesn't have 1980's wallpaper and borders.

10) I will be able to use my own refrigerator, washer and dryer.

11) I will start cooking and entertaining again.

12) I will have guest bedrooms that don't look like department stores with boxes lined along the walls and stacked to the ceiling that sometimes come crashing down on guests (Grandma).

13) I will find things that have been missing for years, put things in their proper places and finally feel organized again.

Wordless Wednesday!